"This isn't a lucid dream, right?" said Abel.
He was still in denial about the whole situation. He wasted a whole bunch of time in the bathroom wondering whether the mirror was a concealed computer screen or something.
"I mean, who the fuck is this guy?"
He was now touching the mirror all over. He knew what he was doing made him look like an imbecile, but his dumbass was still comprehending the whole situation.
"Ok, this is either a lucid dream, a transmigration like in novels, or I went insane in my sleep."
Calming himself, he figured he would have to continue searching the bathroom. If this was like a transmigration or reincarnation plot, there would be some kind of documentation on the guy he possessed.
Possessive? Yeah, that sent chills down his spine, if that is what actually happened.
Imagining someone getting possessed out of nowhere. No warning, no signs, made him feel like he committed murder. If he was lucky, he died before he took over his body. If not, the alternative was something he wouldn't want to think about.
Wait, in novels, most of the time the protagonist usually gets the memories of the guy he took over.
For a moment, he tried to recall any memories of the previous guy's days.
"Yeah, I've got nothing." He sighed.
"Better look for clues for whoever this guy is."
After searching the bathroom for a little bit, he saw a few documents in the cabinet under the sink.
"Liam Ochieng? So that's this guy's name. Born during the year 2313, and it is currently 2338."
He finally got a rundown on who he reincarnated as. He was looking at a medical document with quite a few pages, so he turned the next page and was quite shaken.
When he got to the third page, time seemed to halt. The room's walls blurred as reality took on an unfamiliar hue. For a moment, he forgot to breathe. After what felt like an hour, he regained his breath and spoke.
"Terminal fucking illness. You've got to be shitting me right now."
On the document sheet, there was a diagnosis for a terminal illness causing, but not limited to, weight loss, insomnia, anorexia, etc.
"No wonder, I look so terrible. I'm already half dead."
Depressed, he looked at his face in the mirror, then pulled up his clothes and inspected his body.
"No wonder why this guy is so pale and scrawny. This guy only has at most two years max according to the documents, what the hell do I?"
He really wondered what to do, all this seemed like a dream. Maybe he would wake up and be back in his dorm room, damn tired, getting ready to go the exam he meant to go for.
"Hah, first thing first, let's get to the shower."
++++++
Back in the bedroom, he dressed in clothes he got from the wardrobe. He wore a simple, plain green shirt and a pair of blue trousers.
"I'm so… exhausted. How is this even possible? I only took a shower and dressed up." He said it tiredly, his words trailing off as if his energy were waning with each syllable.
He was propped up on the side of his bed, his breathing slightly heavy. He wasn't this tired when he was moving around the apartment. Thinking about it now, he figured it was the adrenaline doing the work due to the initial panic he had when he woke up to this situation.
"Putting aside the fact that this body is weak as hell. How do I deal with this illness? I don't think this is a lucid dream, the sensations are way too vivid."
He really didn't know what to do in this situation. According to the document, he had at most two years to live, and that was with the use of drugs and pills every now and then. Not the life he wanted to live.
When he was wondering what his next move would be, the phone rang. Surprised he picked it up, luckily for him his phone was fingerprint locked or else he wouldn't be able to use it.
After unlocking the phone, he saw the user ID. The person on the line was called Boss Cho. It looked like this guy was meant to be his boss, and after hesitating for a brief moment, he answered the call.
"Hello?" Liam said.
"Liam! It's good you picked up the call. I wasn't sure you'd be up this morning."
"No, I am up, boss Cho. So, what seems to be the problem?"
"Boss Cho? You usually call me sir. But, anyhow, listen We're a bit short-staffed for the janitorial team. It turns out the mess from that incident in the academy was worse than we thought. Are you available to lend a hand right now?"
"Academy? I work at an academy. A janitor at that? Well, that sucks. I've got to refuse him. I don't know the first thing about being a janitor." Liam thought.
Sighing out loud, he said the best excuse he had: "Sir, I haven't really been feeling great these past few days, I don't think I can."
"I know you've been a bit lethargic these past few weeks, but we're really in a bind. The work we need to do needs at least staff with level 3 clearance."
"What type of janitor needs level 3 clearance? What janitor needs any clearance, for that matter?" He thought.
He was really thinking right now, as he was quite confused about what the academy was and if a janitor really needed clearance to be doing the job. The janitor role might not even involve being one. Boss Cho said an incident even took place.
"You'd be a lifesaver if you could pitch in. We need all hands on deck." Boss Cho said due to his lack of response.
"I mean, if it's not anything difficult, I don't mind, but..."
"It won't be anything too difficult this time, just the standard cleaning and dusting. You won't even be near the sight of the incident, plus they're paying quite a sum this time so we can move things along faster."
Well, apart from the incident part, it sounds like an ordinary academy. Well, if it's just the standard cleaning, I guess I can go to familiarise myself with and judge the place's work. See If I'll continue to work there"
Alright, I will come help today."
"Fantastic! See you at 13:00 p.m. Just enter through the front gates and show your ID as normal. Head to the janitor's closet, and we'll get you set up."
With that, his boss cut the call. Liam wondered for a moment what he should do. He really had no idea where he should go or how he would travel there. He didn't even know where the ID was.
"Got to find out about all that and where my ID is, and I've also got to change into something more appropriate for janitorial duty then…"
Before he could finish his statement, he heard a loud rumbling sound from his stomach. Yeah, his fatigued body was very hungry at the moment.
"…find something to eat. God, I am hungry."